fulham-team

We employ a team of full and part-time staff at Fulham, supported by our Central Management Team at head office. All of our senior staff holds NVQ, NNEB or degree qualifications in childcare, as do many of the carers under their supervision.

Biljana Dokmanovik, Centre Manager

I embarked upon a childcare career after arriving in the UK in 1992. I joined the team at Happy Times in 2003 as a Nursery Assistant offering care, learning and play opportunities to the one to two year olds. Having gained over twenty-two years experience in raising my own two children, I found it surprisingly easy to translate my maternal skills to childcare.

Since joining the Team I have progressed from Nursery Assistant, to coordinator, to Deputy Manager. In 2007 I was given a unique opportunity to manage our largest nursery. As a Centre Leader I have the overall responsibility for children’s care and development. I enjoy being able to share my own experiences with our parents and our practitioners. Training and continual development are key aspects in achieving a quality provision. To facilitate a positive learning environment, I prioritise my workload so that I am able to develop, support and offer guidance to my team. I believe that children thrive in a caring and supportive environment, which is varied, stimulating and most importantly fun. As parents are their child’s first educators, maintaining positive parental partnerships is key in successfully meeting the needs of the children in our care.

Sue Jennings, Centre Manager

Susan Jennings joined the Happy Times team in August 2006, having been working in the childcare sector since 1990. Susan sums up her extensive career and experience with the following:

“Prompted by my own children starting nursery I began my Early Years career in 1990 as a nursery assistant, prior to which I had always worked in London within the business and administration sectors. I fell in love with the job, trained and qualified in 1993 and continued to develop both academically and practically. I completed my advanced diploma with CACHE and my training as special educational needs coordinator, firstly with the local authority and then undertaking further professional development with Cambridge University. I worked both as SENCO and Deputy Manager, and later as Manager, within a small school based provision where I continued to train for and achieve an Honours Degree in Education.

In 2003 was approached by, and began working for, the local colleges as an Associate Childcare Lecturer. Although I had enjoyed and do continue to enjoy the training and development of mature learners, my passion remained working directly within Early Years. In December 2004 and keen to be a part of an exciting new venture, I began employment as Centre Manager at a newly built, first phase children’s centre in Laindon.

I found developing the centre was a completely new challenge for me, but I loved every minute of it. As well as engaging the staff in the ethos of the new centre, I also participated in a number of research projects and, because of my background, took a key role in staff training and development. The centre experienced one of the first local unannounced Ofsted inspections with outstanding results, and as a result the nursery practice was featured in a number of local and national publications.

I completed my National Professional Qualification in Children’s Centre Leadership in June 06 and felt ready for a new challenges and experiences. I applied for the position of Manager at Happy Times, Hammersmith, and in visiting the centre I fell in love immediately with the fantastic surroundings within which the centre is built. I don’t think I have ever visited a nursery within such an attractive environment, and this together with the strong Happy Times ethos of parents as partners, convinced me that this was the place in which I wanted to continue my career.